Ayla Bakkalli was invited to speak at the United Nations ECOSOC

Ayla Bakkalli, USA Representative of the Crimean Tatar Mejlis and, second term member of the World Congress of Crimean Tatars was invited to speak at the United Nations ECOSOC accredited NGO Committee on Sustainable Development.

NEW YORK (QHA) -

It was at the United Nations Church Center in New York on January 27, 2016 on the Crimean Tatar stories at the Front Lines of conflict, persecution, detentions and extrajudicial arrests, violence and, murders of indigenous Crimean Tatars since the illegal annexation of Crimea, Ukraine on February 26, 2014.

Given the growing role of Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) within the United Nations system this platform provides access to UN officials, delegations, governments to voice the critical situations of the indigenous Crimean Tatars on a civil society level.

Ms. Bakkalli states, that NGOs will be more essential now than ever before given their flexibility and expansive links with other NGOs which will exponentially elevate the discussion of the Crimean Tatars from one of international relations to a global voice.

Ms. Bakkalli states that the focus on the indigenous status of Crimea Tatars is pivotal at the advocacy level. Given that Ukraine as of April , 2014 supports the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP) while an aspirational United Nations document, it is embraced by 370 million indigenous people worldwide, which includes the indigenous Crimean Tatars.

Ms. Bakkalli discussed at the UN NGOs session, the difficult and dangerous situation of the indigenous Crimean Tatars under the illegal annexation.The violence, the attacks and deaths are not confined to one area or one group of people but rather the entire indigenous Crimean Tatars.

That is, the entire 300,000 of them are under daily threat and, consequently are in fact on the Front Lines of the occupation. This is simply due to the fact that the indigenous Crimean Tatars and the leadership are continually on the Front lines both in action, diplomatic level and activism all in opposition to the illegal annexation of their homeland. This needs to be also recognized by NGOs organizations at the United Nations as well.